We need to stop celebrating economic failure...

Plus a look at the modernization efforts of the Canadian military.

It’s weird to see politicians celebrating bad news but that’s what Liberal MPs were doing Friday. Carney and his team were boasting about the boost payment for the Groceries and Essentials Rebate and pointing to the new jobs report as good news.

As I pointed out in my column in the Toronto Sun, when the government has to buy your groceries that’s a failure.

I’m not talking about for the individual, though in some cases it will be a failure on their part. I’m talking about the government and their handling of the economy.

Which brings up the unemployment numbers.

Yes, Stats Canada said that the unemployment rate dropped to 6.6% from 6.9% last month.

The problem is that the unemployment rate is still at 6.6%.

Our national unemployment rate hasn’t been below 6% since February 2024 when it came in at 5.7%, which still isn’t a health number. That’s more than two years of persistently high unemployment, which is a sing of a weak economy.

As you can see, on the jobs front, Canada’s economy has been weak for some time, this is not something we can simply blame on Donald Trump. Though it appears many politicians - like Mark Carney and Doug Ford will do that - and Canadians will give them a pass.

In 2026, Donald Trump remains a get out of jail free card for Canadian politicians.

Ask the professor…

You don’t have to believe me on the state of the economy. I mean, who am I compared to Mark Carney when it comes to assessing economic performance.

That’s why I reached out to my friend, economic professor Eric Kam. He’s been teaching economics, monetary policy and more at Toronto Metropolitan University - formerly Ryerson - for decades.

His view, Canada’s economy is in trouble.

A modern military for Canada is on the horizon…

On Thursday, I had the good fortune to attend the Empire Club luncheon in Toronto. There was a speech by Lieutenant-General Michael C. Wright, Commander of the Canadian Army on where the army is headed.

After there was a panel discussion with General Wright, Bernie Derible, Ontario’s Agent General ASEAN and Ontario’s Military and Defence Representative; Patrick Kelly, Director General at the Defence Investment Agency; and moderator Jody Thomas, Senior Advisor at Counsel Public Affairs and former National Security Advisor to the Prime Minister.

That’s a pretty weighty group who know what they are talking about.

Between the video, the speech and the fireside chat, it’s about an hour, but if you are interested in defence issues, it is worth watching.